When it comes to creating a positive customer experience (CX), the focus of success in this realm has evolved. It has progressed from a value-added benefit to a strategic mandate. The mandates often incorporate untapped talent, social impact, or empathy driven customer interactions as just a few of the new additions to how brands are defining success.
A quick call out on a remarkable and often underserved talent community – military spouses. Military spouses are prime team members for fostering exceptional customer success. They possess qualities such as resilience, adaptability, and a solid understanding of different cultures and societal contexts. Their inherent traits align with the four foundational pillars of customer success: care, cultural affluence, civic awareness, and collaboration.
The Four Pillars of Customer Experience
Customer experience is never as simple as just responding to customer needs. It anticipates and shapes expectations through proactive engagement and an understanding of planning and execution. These tenets enhance customer support, whether as an outsourced CX solution or in-house.
Care
At its core, care in the CX domain means cultivating an environment where empathy and understanding define top priorities. Military spouses bring a unique perspective to this pillar.
The outlook stems from unique lived experiences, often characterized by frequent relocations and adaption to new environments. These journeys help them empathize with customers from various backgrounds and circumstances. This understanding creates a customer-centric approach sensitive to individual customer needs.
The perspective they bring is shaped by their unique life experiences such as frequent relocations and the need to adapt to new environments. This constant change is a common theme in the lives of military spouses. However, it’s what fosters a deep-seated empathy that helps them resonate with customers from diverse backgrounds and circumstances.
They don’t just solve the problem at hand; they use their empathy to transform the customer’s overall experience. Ultimately, these insights turn a challenge into an opportunity for connection and trust-building.
Cultural Affluence
Cultural affluence in CX strategy refers to the richness of understanding and appreciating diverse cultural backgrounds. This knowledge enhances the overall customer experience.
Military spouses often gain exposure to multiple cultures, languages, and global perspectives. This hands-on experience makes them invaluable resources in a globalized market. Their ability to navigate cultural nuance can lead to more personalized and culturally sensitive customer interactions. These relationship skills are more than just a means to build trust and loyalty. They are a strategic tool that can drive key business metrics.
Military spouses’ unique lived experiences equip them with the ability to deliver personalized and culturally sensitive customer interactions. This leads to improved customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores and better customer retention. It also promotes trust and loyalty, extending the company’s market reach into culturally diverse landscapes. This approach reduces customer churn and encourages positive word-of-mouth messaging, which attracts new customers and enhances key business metrics.
Civic Awareness
Civic awareness in CX involves understanding and integrating the societal and community contexts of customers into business strategies. Military spouses possess an inherent sense of community and civic responsibility. They recognize and align with the broader values and expectations of customers. This alignment can positively impact customer trust and loyalty.
In some market segments, customers increasingly look for brands that reflect their values and make lasting favorable impressions on their communities. A study conducted by the Harris Poll found that 82% of consumers purchase goods or services from companies whose values align with their own.
A military spouse CX professional might use civic-mindedness to guide community-focused initiatives within the company. This approach conveys that the business’s operations and goals resonate with the community’s needs and values. They become your brand ambassadors when it matters most.
Collaboration
Organizations can’t overlook the transformative impact of effective collaboration among team members. Teamwork promotes workplace chemistry, which yields diverse insights and outcomes aimed at driving customer experience. Military spouses have developed traits in this area due to their experiences in continually building new supportive networks. Their ability to work cohesively with others and adapt quickly to team dynamics makes them instrumental in collaborative CX environments.
Their collaborative skills can significantly improve speed and proficiency which are key performance indicators (KPIs) for call centers. This means faster resolution times and more efficient service, leading to higher customer satisfaction. Plus, their adaptability and resilience contribute to lower attrition rates.
For instance, in Q1 2024, Instant Teams reported an attrition rate of just 7.5% – a testament to the positive impact of these traits on the workforce. These metrics – speed, proficiency, and attrition rate – are not just numbers. They represent the tangible business benefits of leveraging the unique skills of military spouses in CX roles.
The Future of Customer Success
In CX roles, military spouses promise more than just positive customer experiences. By extension, they also contribute to the broader goal of community and societal development. There are measurable benefits for organizations as well. They support the more tangible underlying goals of your organization. These objectives include greater operational efficiencies and a healthier bottom line.
Want to apply the unique capabilities of military spouses to your customer experience strategy? We excel at partnering with CX executives to integrate these four pillars into their CX strategies, recognizing the steadfast contributions of military spouses. With Instant Teams, this isn’t just a possibility – it’s a reality. Contact Instant Teams today to assess your current CX practices and how we can boost your brand and customer satisfaction!
